Page 2395 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 30 July 2019
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I can report that both our male and female participation rates also increased over the last year. Not only do we have amongst the highest participation rates in the country, it is worth noting that our female participation rate is six percentage points higher than either New South Wales or Victoria. Women’s participation in the workforce shows that the right kinds of jobs are on offer in our community, along with the supports to help with caring and other responsibilities that too often fall to women in our society. The ACT’s female workforce participation rate is testament to our city’s inclusiveness.
It is also another important source of financial security for Canberra households because in this jurisdiction both women and men can find good jobs that meet their family’s needs and their individual circumstances.
MR PETTERSSON: Chief Minister, how is youth unemployment tracking in the territory?
MR BARR: The ACT economy has also been performing incredibly strongly when it comes to creating jobs for young people. Our unemployment rate for people aged 15 to 24 is currently the lowest it has been since 2008, so we are seeing the strongest labour market for young people in over a decade.
The unemployment rate for young Canberrans has fallen by over two per cent in the past 12 months. As of the June data it was a little over half the rate of youth unemployment seen nationally, so the ACT’s unemployment rate is half that of the national rate.
This is important because a young person’s first steps into the workforce have a significant impact on their longer term employment outcomes, and if young Canberrans can finish their education and move straight into a good job they will be well placed to keep on building their careers from there. Giving more young people the chance to find a good job avoids the huge waste of talent, energy and skills that comes from people being unemployed or out of the labour force for long periods.
Canberra’s very strong jobs market is providing more opportunity and better economic security for young people, women and men. This is why the government will continue our efforts of economic diversification to continue to see the ACT economy grow faster than the rest of the nation and to attract more investment into the ACT economy. The evidence so far is that this approach has been delivering for a number of years now.
ACT Health—radiotherapy
MR PARTON: My question is to the Minister for Health. Minister, I refer to the Canberra Health Services budget strategic objective 9, “Improving timeliness of access to radiotherapy services”. The estimated outcome for 2018-19 was that only 70 per cent of palliative care patients started treatment within the recommended two weeks. Only 50 per cent of radical care patients started treatment within the recommended four weeks. The target for both classes was 90 per cent and remains so for this year. When your predecessor became health minister in 2016, the outcomes
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